Originally posted by BorderReiver The 1979 Mod rocks massivley. I'm in the middle of a crusade to set a time that would've qualified the Ensign N177 at every race (naturally all driver aids are off). It's wonderfully addictive.

Karlth named some of the best mods already. I would like to add the Caterham mod which works very well with the already mentioned Realfeel plugin and the recent BMW 320 E21 mod which looks awesome but (according to the makers) works better without Realfeel. Both are pretty easy to pick up (apart from some of the really insane high end Caterhams) but the Caterham mod is one of the most realistic available in rFactor, IMO.

As for tracks, besides the obvious greats there are a lot of not-so-obvious (at least to me) gems available, for example OLDRing (some great corners modeled on classic tracks), Birmingham Motorplex (nice elevation changes and do-or-die points), Livet Glen with it's off camber corners and bumpiness and Charade 2006 (which has it all, really).

The Porshe Fabcar and Porsche Supercup mods are among a couple of my favourites. Althought the 1979 is probably the best (IMO), followed by the Renault Megane mod. As for circuits I really enjoy 1988 Silverstone and the Nordschliefe.

I'm slightly old fashioned and would like a physical copy, not just a digital download.

my understanding is that that's the full game, pre-activated (although it doesn't self-install, you have to do the install yourself 'long hand' by dragging the files off the disc and then installing like you'd downloaded it). One thing to bear in mind, i believe it's rfactor lite base files, so some of the original sound files are omitted, but there is a sound pack available on rfactor.net to replace these if required (certain mods, including our f2 and hotrod mods at uksom utilise the original sound files so we had to do some legwork to establish the cause....ended up all of the affected users were lite downloaders)

tried this the other year but i'm a keyboard player and couldn't get into it. Does anyone know if any of the other mods 79 or World Sports Car 70s are any better with keys ?

Hi Sherer, in all honesty, keys are always going to be a severe compromise for rf, because of its 'simulator' roots. There are things you can do in control settings to try and make it more key-friendly, like reducing the feed rate for throttle and brake and steering but in all honesty that's a bit 'papering over the cracks'. I can appreciate the financial and logistical pains of a steering wheel and pedals (my pc's in our front sitting room, so a race seat and wheel setup between the aquarium and the tv was never going to be popular with mrs wrighty lol) but i'd honestly suggest you'd enjoy rf more with at least a pad, preferably an analog one (like the playstation2 pads.....i race with a pad still, much to the howling derision of my online compadres who think G25s grow on trees rofl) but even with the normal Dpad buttons it'll soon become much more easy than keys. In the end, however, you need the sensitivity that analog pads can offer (by using the thumbsticks to control throttle, brake and steering) at least, and a wheel and pedals will always be superior to the kind of sensitivity of input that even an experienced pad-hag (like me) can manage.If ever there was a game that deserves a little investment, whether it be financial (for equipment or even your internet connection for online play) and personal (practice time with a better control method), its rFactor, as the range of mods is vast and the people making them are all passionate in their support of the racing that 'their' mod represents.......time to step away from the keyboard and buy a controller that's made for the job ;)

thanks for the info. Still not sure if rfactor is really for me. I love the idea of driving a 917 or Lotus 79 etc but I don't like the whole sim side where if i set a damper wrong I spin off at the first corner.

I have been playing Race Pro the WTCC game which i am enjoying, it has more of a pick up and play feel about it but you can do the full sim mode if you want to get deeper into the game.

Will try with a pad on rfactor and then see how I get on, can't afford a G25 and not got the room for one either.

Hi Sherer, in all honesty, keys are always going to be a severe compromise for rf, because of its 'simulator' roots. There are things you can do in control settings to try and make it more key-friendly, like reducing the feed rate for throttle and brake and steering but in all honesty that's a bit 'papering over the cracks'. I can appreciate the financial and logistical pains of a steering wheel and pedals (my pc's in our front sitting room, so a race seat and wheel setup between the aquarium and the tv was never going to be popular with mrs wrighty lol) but i'd honestly suggest you'd enjoy rf more with at least a pad, preferably an analog one (like the playstation2 pads.....i race with a pad still, much to the howling derision of my online compadres who think G25s grow on trees rofl) but even with the normal Dpad buttons it'll soon become much more easy than keys. In the end, however, you need the sensitivity that analog pads can offer (by using the thumbsticks to control throttle, brake and steering) at least, and a wheel and pedals will always be superior to the kind of sensitivity of input that even an experienced pad-hag (like me) can manage.If ever there was a game that deserves a little investment, whether it be financial (for equipment or even your internet connection for online play) and personal (practice time with a better control method), its rFactor, as the range of mods is vast and the people making them are all passionate in their support of the racing that 'their' mod represents.......time to step away from the keyboard and buy a controller that's made for the job ;)

cheers........wrighty

Capable drivers on keyboard can match top drivers in leagues who are using some aids. It's that vast amount of keyboard drivers blame keyboard because they don't know how to drive.

oddly enough, it was mentioned in the FOTA discussions somewhere, when it got to the possibility of a new name for the series, due to the licencing rights that FOM have for the F1 name, that BriSCA are the only governing body for motorsport that are still allowed to use the F1 name without fear of repercussion from FOM, so I suppose you could say that F1 and F1s are both F1 ..........

I've had Rfactor for a few years now but I've never, ever had the steering configured right so I've never gotten into it properly. Did a few online league races etc. but with the steering it was almost impossible to finish a race without crashing.

I use the logitech momo racing wheel and i've tried for days without any success to get it to work properly - copying all the settings from forums that claim they make the wheel work. The problem is that you have to drive completely on rails - as soon as it steps out countersteering does almost nothing to fix it - and with force feedback on countersteering is very heavy when it should be lighter. Driving the F1 cars without any aids i was able to be fairly competitive but eventually i'd stuff it when i got sideways.

I've given up getting the wheel to work several times, and then tried again only to fail. Steering has always worked perfectly in LFS without having to configure anything.

I like that cars and tracks available but it isn't much fun driving when you have to tiptoe around avoiding any oversteer moments.

I wonder if this is a steering wheel specific issue or if buying a new wheel will change nothing?

rfactor has very good ffb and I've never had a problem, I've used logitech formula force, momo, DFP, DFP GT and now using a G25

The only thing I can think of is that your forces are reversed, all logitech wheels in rfactor need the force feedback set to -100 (minus one hundred) if that isn't your problem then I can't think what else it could be.

I'm thinking of getting rFactor (actually, let me rephrase that - I am getting rFactor ;)), and have a list of mods, tracks and addons I have found that I want to put on the game. Are there any others I should put on too? If so, can you provide a link? Or do I have too many mods/courses?

I'm thinking of getting rFactor (actually, let me rephrase that - I am getting rFactor ;)), and have a list of mods, tracks and addons I have found that I want to put on the game. Are there any others I should put on too? If so, can you provide a link? Or do I have too many mods/courses?

Just for your info , the 2008 Special editition, with the BMW-F1 on the cover, does include the full game. It will probably be easier to find than an original copy.

It's only too many mods if you want to save disk space. The game can get a bit slower too, but Mod Launcher speeds it up a little.

Beyond your list of mods, definitely get Historic Touring & GT Cars if you have the GTL cd (or if you have, erm, other means). Other cars that I like but people don't often list, are the 1970 Ferrari F1 and the 85 F1 beta - you'll need to disable RealFeel to drive this last one though. Enduracers is also a very fun mod.

Definitely get RealFeel, makes force feedback much better.

As for tracks, you're missing quite a couple of gems there. Mid-Ohio, Rouen and Kyalami 79 are a must. There are at least 2 good versions of Suzuka, Raceking's is the best looking but has fictional adverts. There's good GP4 conversions of Interlagos and Sepang if you want to run F1s. There's a very fun Sachsenring '67. There's a recently made version of the Portimão track here in Portugal. You're also missing the best fictional tracks: OldRing, Livet Glen, Thermalito.

Erm I finally changed my graphic card so this game now works fine. I went to Rfactor central but I'm overwhelmed with mods available. Anyone has a good F1 recommendation? Or general tips how to get started? I drive withotut aids so the realism is primary, it doesn't have to be 2009 or 2008 season.

edit: and oh yeah, my computer is still not remotely uptodate with modern standards, so flashy graphics are on the priority list either. Also, playing online is what I like the most.

Thanks for that Vodoun! Already downloaded CDTP 2006 and 2005 - in case 2006 will works sluggish, it seems to be banzai in graphic department, while CDTP 2005 has lower res textures (it;s possible 2006 has it too, don't know).

The amount of goodness available at rfactor central is absolutely batshit insane. Hell, even the retail version (I bought a physical copy in a store) has tons of stuff one can waste loads of time on. Coming from F1 Challenge, I felt at home with F1 (BMW 2007) instantly, even though the physics are noticeably more accurate (and it really says something, F1C was tip top in itself). And the sense of speed is so much better with Rfactor, with vibrations and everything. So cool.
Rally-a-like stuff is fun as hell but I suck at it but the biggest surprise was the faux-Nascar (NSCR) car. It handles 'like a pig'. It has the power, but it won't brake and won't turn. Seriously, I checked whether everything is with my wheel as I thought brakes are off, it's that bad compared with F1. Oh boy I haven't been this excited by a game in years.

Oh as for 'full/not full" question, the one I bought (in Poland) has a very similar cover and I bought it uh earlier this year I think, I guess it is exactly the same thing: A full game with combined 1.2-something patch, BMW 2007 car and some F1 tracks (Shanghai, Barcelona, Nurburgring). No additional downloads or even Internet connection is needed to play it.

ahh gotta back to work but if anyone is looking for a game that will work fine on an older computer, this is is.

Erm I finally changed my graphic card so this game now works fine. I went to Rfactor central but I'm overwhelmed with mods available. Anyone has a good F1 recommendation?

F1-79 is a great mod, wings + ground effect, interesting cars (Cosworth V8s vs Ferrari flat-12 vs Renault turbo) and comes with a full set on 1979 F1 tracks - some used today (Montreal), some used today with significant changes (Silverstone), some not used today (Long Beach).

Wake - do you mean loss of downforce when following in corners or tow/draft? Both are modelled in rfactor i believe although in CTDP they are quite innacurate but in a good way. There seems to be more tow effect than real f1 and less 'dirty air' in corners making racing often better than in real F1.

I've no idea how some people can play using the keyboard. I tried it many times way back, it just feels all wrong. No fluid controls. Even with the X360 gamepad I was struggling with no traction control, especially Monza on the slow corners with the gamepad. Then when I got the G25 a year ago, never started using it until I got a playseat in March this year, rFactor has became a different game for me. Really enjoyable.

I'm still testing a setup on Bahrain though I'm not sure what's the best CTDP traction control setting. I can't take turn 2 flat out on the lowest traction control setting that CTDP offers. I have to lift off a bit or I spin out.

I haven't tried playing with keys in Rfactor but I'm sure it's possible to be semi-competitive with this, I used to play with keys in F1 Challenge (game made by people who later designed the Rfactor physics), setup screens are mostly simply copy+pasted from f1 Challenge. Only aids you need are TC and ABS and with steering assitance keyes might be as fast as a wheel but it takes 50% of the pleasure away. But a good keys player will win with poor/medicore wheel players, been there done that. Still, if you will start playing with keys you will sooner or later get a wheel and then be kicking yourself for not getting it earlier, so get one and be done with it already.

NOW,
RAFCTOR F1 1979 MOD RULES ALL. This is <bunch of obscenities>! Sooo great. It seems like power sliding is actually a faster way through some corners and it's so incredibly enjoyable and so not-modern-f1. Also, running the modern F1 car on the 1979 tracks really shows that F1 went a long way.
Also, what Rfactor does brilliantly is show the vibration in driver POV. In CDTP 2006 you ain't see shit when car goes across rough curbs, it's brilliant.

I haven't tried playing with keys in Rfactor but I'm sure it's possible to be semi-competitive with this, I used to play with keys in F1 Challenge (game made by people who later designed the Rfactor physics), setup screens are mostly simply copy+pasted from f1 Challenge. Only aids you need are TC and ABS and with steering assitance keyes might be as fast as a wheel but it takes 50% of the pleasure away. But a good keys player will win with poor/medicore wheel players, been there done that. Still, if you will start playing with keys you will sooner or later get a wheel and then be kicking yourself for not getting it earlier, so get one and be done with it already.

NOW,RAFCTOR F1 1979 MOD RULES ALL. This is <bunch of obscenities>! Sooo great. It seems like power sliding is actually a faster way through some corners and it's so incredibly enjoyable and so not-modern-f1. Also, running the modern F1 car on the 1979 tracks really shows that F1 went a long way.Also, what Rfactor does brilliantly is show the vibration in driver POV. In CDTP 2006 you ain't see shit when car goes across rough curbs, it's brilliant.

Get RFACTOR, folks.

The 79 mod is brilliant, indeed. Hard to believe that F1 cars were so jumpy. Without any aids on the car bounces like crazy on the straight. The only problem I have is finding setups on the internet. A lot of links, but most of them don't work... I wish that there was a setup guide for rFactor like that of Doug Arnao for GP2...

Also, what Rfactor does brilliantly is show the vibration in driver POV. In CDTP 2006 you ain't see shit when car goes across rough curbs, it's brilliant.

Get RFACTOR, folks.

Interesting how opinions can differ

To me it's most annoying and unrealistic feature. It should be car element that is bouncing, not the whole picture. Human brain immediately adjusts to movement like that and while your whole body shakes, your eyesight it's... more less... clear and focused as your eyeballs counteract the movements or your brain 'adjusts' what eyeball musles are not quick enough to work out. If the real world worked like some rFactor/mods you would need sick bag every time you walk the stairs LOL

The problem that happens with violent vibration is when G forces slow down the blood flow rate and cause the micro blackouts, but the 'stablilization' of the eyesight is always there. At least for the brain that is used to such a workout